THEORY OF SLOW SECOND ORDER REACTIONS IN POWER PLANT PLUMES: COMPARISON WITH PRELIMINARY DATA

Abstract

Slow second order reactions in which plume travel time is short compared to characteristic chemical reaction times are incorporated into the conservation equations for a buoyant plume in a crosswind. In the theory, a source term has been written for a second order irreversible reaction of the form A + B → AB. Approximate solutions to the conservation equations are derived in the near and far-field and compared with numerical results for a representative range of stack exit parameters. The relative contribution of near and far-field kinetics to the end-point conversion ratio [AB]/[A] is predicted with the approximate expressions. Expected errors between asymptotic predictions of the conversion ratio [AB]/[A] and numerical results are demonstrated for a wide range of stack exit parameters. The direct application of these useful results to the prediction of expected levels of sulfate formation from power plant stacks are demonstrated and a comparison is made with limited wind tunnel data.